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Page 1 of 7     Thanks for stopping in to visit. We hope you enjoy the pages.  Sign our Guestbook 09 Apr 2008 - 10:03 pm Heather Smith VA Bryan and I were next door neighbors as kids (around the time I was in third grade, Bryan was a grae or so ahead). We loved to play together outside and I remember going to get crickets for his lizard a couple of times. Bryan was always fun loving and didn't mind playing with a girl all the time. He loved being outside and I spent many days trying to get used to playing G.I. Joe instead of Barbies! he was a great person already then, and I will forever remember him in that respect! 07 Apr 2008 - 10:31 am Leah Nelson Libertyville, IL I met Bryan when we were 8 years old and saw each other when i visited my family in North Carolina. I specifically remember one time we hung out at his house and then went to a movie with my little cousin, aunt, and mom. Bryan was such a great kid, and really touched me. When I had a baby boy this March and I named him Daniel after Bryan's middle name because i wanted Bryan's memory to life on in a person. 06 Apr 2008 - 07:55 pm Robert F Naples Durham, NC My sons Andrew, 19, and Patrick, 16, were Scouts with Bryan. My son Andrew is now at State with hopes of being a veterinarian. Unfortunately I don't get to see him as much anymore due to his studies. I just took Patrick home to his mom's house after spending his Spring break with him. I can only feel a part of the emptiness that Nancy must feel; but surely share the love. Fortunately we can take comfort in knowing others miss Bryan as well. We still have our fond memories of shared times to be grateful for while we wait to meet again. 06 Apr 2008 - 08:25 am Nancy Durham I sit here thinking about Bryan turning 18 years old today. He'd be tall, handsome, and his eyes would twinkle as he laughed. Our house was always full of laughter. April is always a bitter sweet month for me now. The joy the month brought me on the day of Bryan's birth, each and every birthday celebration we had shared together. The bitterness of the day he left us. Yes, this reminds me of the book "The Prophet" which Bryan and I would read to each other. How you can really know/measure true joy and true pain. Hmm, even writing this reminds me how Bryan was wise beyond his years. I remember a party Bryan and I went to. "No kids invited" but then I'd get a phone call and the host would inform me "You know we don't consider Bryan a kid and he is invited!" We went to the party. Bryan admiring the furniture, gently stroking it, checking out the details, and then whispering to me that I should build one of those for us one day. Oh how he believed in me. While at the party, Bryan would be off on his own, striking up conversations with everyone. I remember a man coming up to me and said "Is that your kid over there?¡¨ Oh the words no parent wants to hear. I told him "Yes", wondering what was going to be said next. I could see Bryan through the crowd, laughing and chatting up a storm. The man said "He's not really a kid is he? I've just had the longest, in depth conversation with him. I could have never had that type of conversation with any adult I know!¡¨ That was Bryan. I remember having parent/teacher meetings through-out the years. One thing was always consistently said "Bryan is always polite and shows good manners.¨ Some of the other things they said that stuck in my mind: "I love to call on him for answers. He doesn't always give me the one I'm looking for, but the one he does give sure makes me think!and it isn't wrong!¨ Another one was when his homeroom teacher told me that he was giving Bryan a hard time about being late for class and writing him a tardy slip. (This was when the school year first started) Geesh! How could he have been late I thought. I drop him off for school everyday. He's one of the flag raisers and is there early. Well, then the teacher goes on to tell me he asked Bryan what his excuse was. Bryan said he had none. Then as the teacher wrote out the slip, he asked Bryan again "Now really, how come you were late?" Bryan told him "There was a boy in a wheelchair that couldn't get his locker open.¨ Bryan was helping him unlock the lock. Needless to say, the tardy slip was torn up and the teacher learned something more about Bryan that day. Yes, I still daydream wondering what Bryan would be like today. I smile when I think of all the wonderful things we did together. I still shed tears when the memories are just so close and deep. I am saddened with the knowledge I can no longer play, sing and dance with my best friend and playmate. The worst of it, I no longer have someone to call me "Mom" I had a wonderful strange dream the other night. You know how dreams are; they never totally make a lot of sense. But in this dream I met someone dying but when I was about to go into despair, they told me almost in a spirit form It's alright. I can feel you and be still with you. It's alright. I remember immediately thinking how great it was to know now Bryan was still with me and he still knows how much I love and miss him. This year will be one of the toughest years to give out the Boy Scout scholarship. Bryan's patrol will be part of the selection group. All of them young men now. Eagle Scouts. I'm so proud of them all. 05 Apr 2008 - 02:20 pm Lisa Levin Chapel Hill NC` As Bryan's 18th birthday approaches, I am remembering so many things about him, even things that happened before he was born! I remember Nancy sticking her thumb HARD into her side, saying the baby was poking her, so she was gonna poke back. We started calling him "BamBAm" back then. I remember him being in his little cradle as a newborn, able to lift his head and squirm forward even though that wasn't supposed to happen yet! The first week Nancy was meant to go back to work, Bryan couldn't go to daycare because the woman was sick. Nancy asked me to keep Bryan for the day. I had no real baby experience, but she assured me I would be fine. It was very hot out that day and I had no air conditioning. I sat holding Bryan, both of us sweating. I didn't know what to do, except wait for him to need a fresh diaper or some food. I stared at his sweet face for hours. Mostly he slept, but when he was awake, he stared right back. I was shocked how sentient he seemed, so connected to me even though I was a near-stranger. He was so present. I think maybe it was then that I believed I would want to have children of my own. I recall when the daycare complained that he was moving all the furniture and what was Nancy going to do about it? She replied, "Tell him to move it back!" He probably did, if they asked him, because he was a good boy. Once, we went to a restaurant for breakfast. When the waitress showed us our booth, Nancy indicated that Bryan should slide in first. "Why do I ahve to be on the inside of the booth?" he complained. She replied, "Because this way, you're trapped!" She laughed, and he did too. It was then that I realized you can be honest with your child and humorous, and everything would be fine. (This was new information for me!) I can see him decked out in his fatigues, running through the darkening woods, grinning at his thoughts of being sneaky. I remember him thinking that farts were funny. He loved his dogs very much. Jake, I think the first one was named. Then Renee, his beautiful girl. The sentiment was mutual. She looked so sad after he was gone. I can imagine him today at 18. The phone would be ringing off the hook with girls wanting to date him, fellas wanting to hang with him (fishing, hunting, hiking, etc) He would have a cadre of good buddies, most of whom he'd known all along. And he would be sweet to his mama, cause he always was. I wonder what he would've wanted to study in college. I'm guessing he would've gone around here, because he wouldn't want Nancy to be without him. What if she needed someone to cook? She'd be too busy building a structure or helping other people to take the time to cook for herself! Bryan will always be in my thoughts. It's just a fact. He touched so many lives that his memory keeps him alive in all our hearts. 05 Apr 2008 - 06:51 am Rob Rabb Durham, NC Bryan was such a great kid - at all ages. He would have been an outstanding adult, college student and such. When I was a kid, I thought things like manners were just for show, but as a parent, I know they are a reflection of a child's values and respect for others. Bryan's manners and obvious respect for others earned him their respect. As for Nancy - she has always reminded me of my mom (a single parent) - especially in my primary school years - in that it was always family first. He priorities have always crystal clear. We love you and miss you, Bryan.     Page 1 of 7